The Amazing Bible. Book Club

Traditionally, it is believed Paul the Apostle wrote this letter to Timothy after he was released from house arrest in Rome around AD 63. Paul was in Macedonia, and he wrote to encourage Timothy to stay in Ephesus so he could stand up against false teachings. Verse 5 says, "The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith." These f...

This section of Acts is about Paul's missionary journeys into Gentile lands. The church in Antioch, Syria, sent Paul and Barnabas off to share the good news of Jesus Christ. They sailed to the island of Cyprus, and once they covered the area, they sailed to the western part of what is now modern-day Turkey. They then backtracked so they could place leadership in each of the churches they star...

Acts is a continuation of the Life of Jesus, but not in bodily form, but in the form of His Spirit working through believers in Christ. The Key verse for the book is Acts 1:8, "But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." These chapters show how the church first grew i...

Luke starts off telling the story of Elizabeth's barrenness and how God did a miracle in their lives, after all these years, they will have a son, John the Baptizer. Then we read about Mary's encounter with an angel of the Lord, and that she too will bear a child, who will be the Son of God. Mary quickly went to Elizabeth, her relative's house, and seeing the miracle in Elizabeth&ap...

Luke wrote this gospel for the "most excellent Theophilus," so he could know for certain what he had been taught was true. Luke started with the birth of John the Baptist and then the birth of Jesus, and he made it clear it was an act of God through the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit was present with Jesus during His baptism and his temptation, and He came through "in the power of the...

In this last chapter of Philippians, he encouraged the church to stand firm in the Lord, to reconcile disagreements, and to "Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!" The reason we can rejoice always is because the Lord is near, and we can pray and bring to him any requests and concerns. We also are to be thankful, because we can trust the Lord to know what He is doing,...

In this chapter, Paul warns the church at Philippi, to beware of those people with the false doctrine that circumcision of the flesh makes one right with God. The way one gets right with God is through faith in what Jesus did when He died on the cross for our sins. God then circumcises our hearts (Deut. 30:6). Paul said if those men boast about their qualifications, Paul's list of qualificati...

In chapter one of Philippians, Paul encouraged the church at Philippi, "Being confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus" (vs. 6). He was in prison at Rome, and he also shared, "For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain" (vs. 21). He was ready to die and be with the  Lord, but he also knew God was n...

Dr. Alan B. Stringfellow said in his book, "A 52-Lesson Introduction to the 66 Books of the Bible," that chapter one of Philippians can be described as "Christ - The Purpose of Life." Point one he took from verse 8, "The Christian should have the feelings of Christ." Point two came from verses 12-18, "We should have the same interests as Christ." The third p...

The Apostle Paul is in chains in Rome when he wrote this letter to the church at Philippi. He was with Timothy, who may have scribed the letter. We also see that the church now has overseers, or bishops, and deacons as leadership. Paul blessed them with "Grace and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ." Then verses 3-8 are the thanksgiving section. Paul did not need to defe...

This is a personal letter from Paul the Apostle to Philemon, which came with the sending back of Onesimus, who once was Philemon's slave, but who ran away. He met Paul in Rome, and through his teaching became a Christian. Both Onesimus and Paul knew that in order to honor the Lord, Onesimus needed to go back and make things right with his previous master, who also was a believer in Christ. Pa...

Paul closes his letter with encouragement for the believers to keep on praying, and be devoted, watchful, and thankful in it. He also asked for prayer, not to be released from prison, but to proclaim the mystery of Christ, which as he said in 1:27, "which is Christ in you, the hope of glory!" Paul reminded them to be wise with their words and actions to non-Christians, and that it should...

Chapters 1-2 cover doctrine, who Christ is, and who we are because of who Christ is and what He did when He died on the cross for our sin, and now that He is alive, when we die to self by confessing our sin, and asking Him to forgive us, believers in Jesus are dead to sin and now alive with Christ in God. Since this transformation has happened, Christians are to do two things. The first is we take...

The end of chapter 1 of  Colossians, Paul shared about his calling from the Lord, which was to share the mystery of the gospel, "which is Christ in you, the hope of glory" (vs. 27). Paul's purpose of proclaiming, admonishing, and teaching was "so that we may present everyone perfect in Christ" (vs. 28). Added to that, Paul hoped to encourage their hearts, and unite their l...

Paul sent this letter to the church in Colosse, with the letter to the church of Ephesus, and to the letter for Philemon, who attended the church at Colosse. Paul sent these letters with Tychicus and Onesimus because Paul was in chains for the gospel in Rome. Paul started his letter, letting them know that Timothy was with him. He then shared they gave thanks for them because they heard about thei...

In this last chapter of Ephesians, Paul addressed how various relationships reflect Christ in believers lives. The end of chapter 5, Paul said to be filled with the Spirit by giving thanks, encouraging the body of Christ, and submitting to one another in Christ. The first relationship addressed was marriage with a husband and wife, and now Paul addressed children with parents and slaves and master...

This section starts with Paul reminding us we are dearly loved children, which then should encourage us to imitate our Father and live a life of love. God the Son, Jesus Christ, also loved us so much that He was willing to give Himself up by dying on the cross for us as a sacrifice and offering unto God. That love compels us to move out of darkness into the light of the Lord. Christians are to &qu...

In this chapter, Paul the apostle reminded the Gentile believers in Jesus that they make up the one body of Christ, with the Jewish believers, and since we are one body, we ought to work on keeping the unity through the Spirit of God. Yet God did not make each of us the same, we are different with different gifts given to us by Christ, and so in our unity, we also display our diversity. It is simi...

Since believers in Christ are the church, the family of God, the body of Christ, one in Christ, therefore, Paul prays for them. He prays they will understand they are a part of the whole family of God. We are not alone. He prays they may be strengthened through the Spirit of God, and through Christ which are both in the hearts of believers. He prays their knowledge of God's love will be roote...

The mystery God revealed, especially to Paul the apostle, was that Gentiles did not have to become Jews in order to become Christian, and that all believers in Jesus, both Jew and Gentile make up the body of Christ, and are a part of the family of God. It is this truth that placed Paul as a prisoner of the Romans, but Paul understood that really he was a prisoner of the Lord. Paul also stated that...

In this section of Ephesians, Paul calls the Gentile believers to remember their past that they were separated from Christ, and excluded from citizenship in Israel, and foreigners to the promises of God, without hope, and without God. BUT NOW IN CHRIST JESUS, things are different. Now they are brought near. Now they have peace, now God has made "one new man," or "one new humanity&qu...

In this section of Ephesians, Paul compares their old way of life to their new life in Christ. The old walk of life was dead in sin, disobedience, full of gratifying ones cravings, and it was the ways of the world, with the destination being God's wrath. Yet God loved us, and because He was rich in mercy, those who believe in Jesus Christ, who are found in Him, are made alive, are raised up a...

Paul gives thanks for the saints of Christ because of their faith in the Lord and their love for each other. Than Paul prays a prayer that they may grow in the Spirit with wisdom, revelation and enlightenment, so they can know the hope of their calling in Christ. He also shared that the same power of God which raised Jesus from the dead, is also the same power that is in believers in Christ. Lastl...

Usually the apostle Paul would give a thanksgiving after the opening of his letters, but this time, he explained a blessing. God is blessed and so are those who believe in Jesus Christ. All of these verses make up only one sentence, and Abraham Kuruvilla said it is "the longest sentence in the NT, composed of 202 words." Verses 3-6 focus on God the Father who blessed us, chose us, and pr...

Paul finished his third missionary journey and brought an offering to the church in Jerusalem and while there he was arrested. He ended up appealing to Caesar, which brought him to Rome where he wrote this letter while in house arrest, which is why it is called a prison epistle. Paul starts his letter declaring his apostleship of Christ Jesus, and that it was God's will that he was an apostle...